Chapter 15 CHAPTER FIFTEEN
MAEVA
Did he feel it when I went into heat? Did his wolf go crazy while mine was writhing, wishing he was around to sink his teeth into us? Probably not. He would have said something.
So why did he call in the middle of the night demanding to talk to me. What possessed him to think that I will agree to a date? I've survived as Alpha this long by being stubborn. A few threats from him won't make me change my mind. He can bring hell if he wants to, I'm ready.
I open my door to find Taron leaning on the jeep. He's been standing outside there for the past twenty minutes.
"You could have come inside."
"I could've." He simply says, smiling.
"What's happened now? Is Grant causing more problems?"
"Not yet. That's not why I'm here. I brought two messages."
"Does the car mean we're going somewhere?"
He nods and opens the passenger door for me. I get in and he runs to the other side of the car to get in. He enters and starts the engine.
"I woke up to a text from Alpha Caius. He'll pick you up at six pm. He says that you should put on a dress."
So he persists on doing this? He's going to be disappointed when he comes here by 6 pm.
"What's the second message?" I ask, ignoring what he said about Caius.
Taron smiles and shakes his head. "Alpha Kol has called for a meeting. It's this morning and you are invited."
That makes me laugh. "So now they want to invite me? They no longer think I could be cooking for the pack?"
"Such a dumb thing to think, you're a horrible cook."
I don't laugh at the joke. I know he's trying to make light of the situation but it's my reality. I like the idea of cooking what I eat. I don't do it because of situations like this. If I enter a kitchen to cook once, I'll never live it down.
"Are we attending the meeting?" He asks.
"Yeah, drive there."
I stew silently on the journey. It's not even 8 am yet and I'm already fighting. It's exhausting being an Alpha, it's more exhausting when other Alpha's don't give you regard because of your sex.
When we arrive, the other Alpha's are already here and they're arguing. Taron waits outside the hall while I walk inside. I'm not expecting much from this meeting, maybe a little sucking up so I can let them go through my land but not much else.
"Maeva!" Alpha Kol greets with a giant smile on his face.
He's the worst one of these Alpha's because he wastes his time pretending to not being bothered by me but I know that he doesn't like me. He talks to me like we could befriends but under it, I feel his hate and disgust.
The rest of the Alpha's nod in recognition but don't look too happy to have me here. There's Alpha Mage, Luca, James and Beta Marcel. Marcel is the only Beta in this meeting because his pack doesn't have an Alpha. Caius controls his pack after he killed their Alpha. So he answers to Caius. Which means he answers to me and I can smack his condescending smile off without having to go to war.
I shake my head to clear it of the disgusting thought. What belongs to Caius, doesn't belong to me. Thinking about us as a unit is inviting trouble.
I take a seat and wait for them to tell me what they want. Alpha Kol winks at me and my skin crawls.
"I apologize for the short notice of this meeting, Alpha Maeva." He starts. "But it's important we settle this. We apologize for going through your land without permission but in our defense, this is an urgent matter."
So it's not really an apology. They’re not apologizing for not inviting me to the other meeting they had, they’re just sorry that I took offence to it.
"Yes, we're terribly sorry to have roused you from bed that early in the morning. We know how important beauty sleep is." Alpha James says.
I weigh my options, fight him and have them blame the fight on my female hormones or ignore him then get them where it will hurt? The fight scenario plays in my head. I'll lunge at James and the others will either stand by and watch in excitement or they'll try to separate us.
I take a deep breath and visualize their demises instead. The trip to the council will not be worth it.
"… alright, Alpha Maeva?"
I look up and they're looking at me in concern. I zoned out and I haven't been listening to their bullshit.
"I said that we should all agree on a date to sweep the forest for their rogues and finish them off. The council is advising everyone to stay away from the rogues but what good does that do? Should we live in fear of rogues?" Alpha Kol asks.
"Of course not. We will do it for all our kind." Alpha James says.
"You know this isn't the only forest the rogues hide in right? This is just the one closest to us." I say.
"Don't forget that it's one of the biggest forests. It's still worth it." Alpha Luca adds.
"Yes, with your permission of course, we would like to have free reign to go through your pack until this issue is solved." Alpha James adds.
Translation: we want to further drive fear in your pack by moving through it anytime we like.
"You have my permission to use the route you used the last time. It's shorter." And I don't have to see them interacting with my pack members right in front of me.
They give each other looks but don't say anything. Pushing it will look suspicious and they don't want that. The meeting continues and I fight hard to push down on my anger when they say demeaning things to try and get a reaction out of me. I lose the battle twice and they shut up for a while.
Finally, the shit show ends and I stand to leave. Alpha Kol calls me back and we stand in silence while the others leave. After they all leave, I turn to him.
"I'm sorry to keep you, I know you are busy but this can't wait. I heard that Alpha Caius was at the forest yesterday, what did he want?" He asks, trying to appear nonchalant about it.
"He was there to do that same thing Alpha Mage and Alpha Luca came to do."
"I doubt that." He says, smiling.
"He won't submit to the council and that makes him reckless. Don't trust him." he says with a level of care I haven’t seen from him since I became Alpha.
With that, he walks away and I stand there frozen in shock.
So Caius is the way to rattle them.